The sprawling metropolis of Night City in Cyberpunk 2077 boasts an active night life. One of the more famous bars in the city, the Afterlife, pays heed to the legends of Night City who have drank there by naming their favorite cocktails after them. Early in the journey through Cyberpunk 2077's streets, V visits the notorious club on business with their best friend and partner Jackie Welles. Jackie orders a drink and tells the bartender to remember his recipe for when he becomes famous in the Night City underground.
Jackie lists out the ingredients to his cocktail very plainly: "Shot of vodka on the rocks, lime juice, ginger beer... oh, and most importantly – a splash of love." Many might recognize this as the recipe to a well-known, real-life cocktail, the Moscow Mule. Popularly served in a copper mug, the origin of the Moscow Mule is contested. Some believe the drink to have been invented on the West Coast, not far from where Night City is in the Cyberpunk universe. Others say the Moscow Mule was created in New York in a similar fashion to when Jackie orders it, while having a drink among friends.
Jackie Welles' Drink / Moscow Mule Origins
According to the Wall Street Journal, one version of the story tells of the president of a ginger beer company, the president of a vodka division, and the latter's boss inventing the cocktail originally with lemon instead of lime juice in a New York hotel. However, the owner of the ginger beer company, Cock 'n' Bull, also owned a restaurant of the same name in Hollywood.
The head bartender at the Cock 'n' Bull restaurant claims the drink was made out of a need to clear the basement of excess vodka and ginger beer stock. Regardless, the cocktail grew famous throughout the country and even made its way into Cyberpunk as the Jackie Welles, served up by the game's own head bartender in the Afterlife, a recurring side-character leaving her own mark on Night City's racing circuit.
Want to see Cyberpunk 2077's Jackie Welles drink recipe scenes for yourself? Check them out in the YouTube video from Gamerpillar below!
Jackie Welles' Drink Recipe
The International Bartenders Association (IBA), a governing body of worldwide bartending competitions, lists the recipe for Jackie Welles' Moscow Mule as:
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9 parts vodka |
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24 parts ginger beer |
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2 parts lime juice |
A simpler measurement for the drink might be 2 oz of vodka, about 5.5 ounces of ginger beer, and the juice from half a lime. The IBA recommends first combining the ginger beer and vodka in a glass filled with ice, then adding the lime juice before stirring gently and serving. If players want it to look nice for their Cyberpunk-loving chooms, try using a lime wedge or slice for a garnish. Maybe the "splash of love" Jackie Welles' drink recipe requests is partly in the presentation.
There's a lot of talk in Cyberpunk 2077 about solidifying a legacy. Jackie Welles dreams of being remembered forever in Night City. He knows what happens to legends like Johnny Silverhand, and part of that fate is being memorialized in the menu of the Afterlife. He may be getting ahead of himself trying to name his own drink, but now the world-famous Moscow Mule has another name to those who have played Cyberpunk 2077: the Jackie Welles.
Sources: Wall Street Journal, International Bartenders Association
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Cyberpunk 2077
- Released:
- 2020-12-10
- Franchise:
- Cyberpunk
- Genre:
- Action RPG, First-Person Shooter
- Platform:
- PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Microsoft Windows
- Publisher:
- CD Projekt
- ESRB:
- M
- Developer:
- CD Projekt Red
- Engine:
- REDengine 4
- Summary:
- Cyberpunk 2077 is an action RPG/FPS game set in the universe created by Mike Pondsmith in 1988. Players play as V, a customizable main character who is given an augment that slowly attempts to re-write his memories with those of a dead celebrity played by Keanu Reeves. The two need to work together to keep the protagonist alive. Players will immerse themselves into the neon-lit, crime-ridden environment of Night City as they complete tasks, augment themselves for improved mobility, and customize their weapons to face the foes that inhabit the open city. An expansion pack for the base game, Phantom Liberty, will be released sometime in 2023.
- Expansion Packs :
- Phantom Liberty
- Mode:
- Single-player
- Platforms:
- PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, Microsoft Windows, Google Stadia
- Publishers:
- CD Projekt RED, CD Projekt
- Release Date :
- 10 December 2020
- Rating:
- 7/10 Steam; 9/10 IGN
